Career and Education Opportunities for Medical Secretaries in Gilbert, Arizona

Medical secretaries can find both educational opportunities and jobs in the Gilbert, Arizona area. About 6,610 people are currently employed as medical secretaries in Arizona. By 2016, this is expected to grow 24% to about 8,200 people employed. This is not quite as good as the nation as a whole, where employment opportunities for medical secretaries are expected to grow by about 26.6%. Medical secretaries generally perform secretarial duties utilizing specific knowledge of medical terminology and hospital, clinic, or laboratory procedures.

Income for medical secretaries is about $14 hourly or $29,640 yearly on average in Arizona. Nationally, their income is about $14 per hour or $29,680 per year. Incomes for medical secretaries are not quite as good as in the overall category of Secretarial in Arizona, and not quite as good as the overall Secretarial category nationally.

There are ten schools within twenty-five miles of Gilbert where you can study to be a medical secretary, among seventy-six schools of higher education total in the Gilbert area. Given that the most common education level for medical secretaries is a high school diploma or GED, you can expect to spend only a short time training to become a medical secretary if you already have a high school diploma.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Medical Secretary

Medical Secretary video from the State of New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development

Medical secretaries answer telephones, and direct calls to appropriate staff. They also greet visitors, ascertain purpose of visit, and direct them to appropriate staff. Equally important, medical secretaries have to transmit correspondence and medical archives by mail, e-mail, or fax. They are often called upon to operate office equipment such as voice mail messaging systems, and use word processing and other software applications to ready reports, invoices, financial statements, letters, case histories and medical archives. They are expected to receive and route messages and documents such as laboratory results to appropriate staff. Finally, medical secretaries schedule and confirm patient diagnostic appointments, surgeries and medical consultations.

Every day, medical secretaries are expected to be able to listen to and understand others in meetings. They need to understand what others are saying to them even in a noisy environment. It is also important that they articulate ideas and problems.

It is important for medical secretaries to interview patients to finish documents and forms such as intake and insurance forms. They are often called upon to perform various clerical and administrative functions. They also maintain medical archives, technical library and correspondence files. They are sometimes expected to compile and record medical charts and correspondence, using typewriter or personal computer. Somewhat less frequently, medical secretaries are also expected to maintain medical archives, technical library and correspondence files.

and arrange hospital admissions for patients. And finally, they sometimes have to complete insurance and other claim forms.

Like many other jobs, medical secretaries must have exceptional integrity and be reliable.

Library Clerk. Compile records, sort and shelve books, and issue and receive library materials such as pictures, cards, slides and microfilm. Locate library materials for loan and replace material in shelving area, stacks, or files according to identification number and title. Register patrons to permit them to borrow books, periodicals, and other library materials.

Office Machine Operator. Operate one or more of a variety of office machines, such as photocopying, photographic, and duplicating machines, or other office machines.

Procurement Clerk. Compile information and records to draw up purchase orders for procurement of materials and services.

Typist. Type letters, reports, or other material from rough draft, corrected copy, or voice recording. May perform other clerical duties as assigned.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Medical Secretary Training

Everest College-Mesa - Mesa, AZ

Everest College-Mesa, 5416 East Baseline Ste. 200, Mesa, AZ 85206. Everest College-Mesa is a small college located in Mesa, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 144 students and an admission rate of 68%. Everest College-Mesa has a less than one year program in Medical Office Assistant/Specialist which graduated eighty students in 2008.

Anthem College-Phoenix - Phoenix, AZ

Anthem College-Phoenix, 1515 E Indian School Road, Phoenix, AZ 85014. Anthem College-Phoenix is a small college located in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs and has 1,836 students. Anthem College-Phoenix has a less than one year and an associate's degree program in Medical Insurance Specialist/Medical Biller which graduated six and 723 students respectively in 2008.

Arizona College of Allied Health - Glendale, AZ

Arizona College of Allied Health, 4425 W Olive Avenue Suite 300, Glendale, AZ 85302. Arizona College of Allied Health is a small college located in Glendale, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 2-year programs and has 178 students. Arizona College of Allied Health has a less than one year program in Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant & Medical Secretary which graduated ten students in 2008.

The Bryman School of Arizona - Phoenix, AZ

The Bryman School of Arizona, 2250 W. Peoria Ave. A-100, Phoenix, AZ 85029. The Bryman School of Arizona is a small school located in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 2-year programs and has 682 students. The Bryman School of Arizona has a less than one year and an associate's degree program in Medical Insurance Specialist/Medical Biller which graduated twenty-one and twenty-one students respectively in 2008.

Pima Medical Institute - Mesa, AZ

Pima Medical Institute, 957 S. Dobson Road, Mesa, AZ 85202. Pima Medical Institute is a small school located in Mesa, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 2-year programs and has 883 students. Pima Medical Institute has a less than one year program in Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant & Medical Secretary which graduated thirty-nine students in 2008.

Phoenix College - Phoenix, AZ

Phoenix College, 1202 W Thomas Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85013. Phoenix College is a large college located in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 10,917 students. Phoenix College has a one to two year and an associate's degree program in Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant & Medical Secretary.

IIA College - Mesa, AZ

IIA College, 925 S Gilbert Rd Ste 201, Mesa, AZ 85204-4448. IIA College is a small college located in Mesa, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs and has 225 students. IIA College has a less than one year program in Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant & Medical Secretary which graduated twelve students in 2008.

Lamson College - Tempe, AZ

Lamson College, 875 W. Elliot Road Suite 206, Tempe, AZ 85284. Lamson College is a small college located in Tempe, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 2-year programs and has 483 students. Lamson College has a one to two year program in Medical Insurance Specialist/Medical Biller which graduated sixty-four students in 2008.

GateWay Community College - Phoenix, AZ

GateWay Community College, 108 N. 40th Street, Phoenix, AZ 85034. GateWay Community College is a medium sized college located in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 6,853 students. GateWay Community College has a less than one year and a one to two year program in Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant & Medical Secretary.

IIA College - Phoenix, AZ

IIA College, 4240 W. Bethany Home Rd., Phoenix, AZ 85019-1600. IIA College is a small college located in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs and has 650 students. IIA College has a less than one year program in Medical Administrative/Executive Assistant & Medical Secretary which graduated thirty-three students in 2008.

CERTIFICATIONS

Certified Patient Account Manager:
American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management (AAHAM) CPAM certification is available only to National AAHAM members who are in good standing and have a minimum of four years health care experience, or two years health care experience and a two-year college or university associates degree.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Gilbert, Arizona

Gilbert, Arizona photo by Cygnusloop99

Gilbert is located in Maricopa County, Arizona. It has a population of over 216,449, which has grown by 97.3% over the last ten years. The cost of living index in Gilbert, 94, is below the national average. New single-family homes in Gilbert are priced at $210,100 on average, which is below the state average. In 2008, 1,115 new homes were constructed in Gilbert, down from 2,891 the previous year.

The three most popular industries for women in Gilbert are educational services, health care, and finance and insurance. For men, it is computer and electronic products, construction, and professional, scientific, and technical services. The average travel time to work is about 29 minutes. More than 36.1% of Gilbert residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 11.3%, is higher than the state average.

The unemployment rate in Gilbert is 4.9%, which is less than Arizona's average of 9.3%.

The percentage of Gilbert residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 39.7%, is less than the national average but more than the state average. The largest religious groups are the Catholic Church, the LDS (Mormon) Church and the Southern Baptist Convention.

Gilbert is home to the Santan Substation and the Gilbert Substation as well as Library Park and Parquasito Verde Park. Shopping centers in the area include Village Square Shopping Center and Village Center Shopping Center. Visitors to Gilbert can choose from BCS Hospitality Consultants and CoastClub for temporary stays in the area.